Coffee
by WintersOrchid
Summary: A series of drabbles based on prompts I come across. GerRus
1. Coffee

The week had not been nice to Ludwig, so on Friday he stepped outside his office building to get some coffee, pulling his scarf closer around his neck against the cold. Outside was windier than he had expected and it was tempting to turn around and just get some over-priced coffee from the shop inside, but he was already out and the walk would do him good. At the stop light, another tall man grumbled to himself as he dug for something in his bag and Ludwig watched him out of the corner of his eye, wondering idly what he was looking for. Whatever it was must have been found for the man stopped and turned to face the street with a smile, clearly in a better mood. When the light turned for them to walk, the other man left Ludwig on the corner, his long legs carrying him ahead of Ludwig. It wasnt in a rush to get back to his desk and the paperwork he owed, so he let the other man stride ahead of him as he wanted. They were both stopped at the next light, he stood next to the scarfed man again, getting left behind again to watch him walk for lack of anything better to watch. Not many people were out at this time.

As the tall man walked ahead, he side-stepped another person and walked straight into a streetlamp, hard enough that Ludwig could hear the thud of his forehead meeting metal. He staggered away from it as Ludwig laughed so hard he had to close his eyes and wipe away a tear. A sudden burst of pain and he was stopped, eyes opening to find he had run into the same pole. The tall man was standing off to the side, now laughing.

"Teach me to laugh at the misfortune of others, huh?" he managed.

"True, but it was a very good thing to laugh at. Do you have time for a coffee?"


	2. Coffee Shop

Order was perfect. Schedules were there to be followed. For three years straight, Ludwig had been going to a coffee shop almost exactly at the half-way point between his dorm hall and the main campus, getting one black coffee with nothing added, paid three dollars and sixty-three cents, waited a short minute or two for his cup, then left. Perfectly orderly, perfectly executed. There was a tall, heavy-set man about his age who usually helped him and Ludwig felt bad for him, since the early hour meant the poor man had to be up even earlier to open shop and start preparations. Still, the hour didn't seem to bother Ivan as he always smiled at Ludwig and gave him little compliments that always had him flushing and awkwardly nodding or worse, returning the compliments without thought. However, as he checked his cup for his name today, he was surprised to find a string of numbers his brain translated into a phone number… Looking back at Ivan, he caught a flash of a smile as the other man helped another customer with understanding the menu and left after calculating that the other wouldn't be free anytime soon. His engineering class went by in a haze as Ludwig stared at his empty coffee cup, too wrapped up in what this meant to focus properly. When the professor dismissed the class, he absent-mindedly gathered his things and headed for the door, still clutching the cup. Two classes later, he had figured out what he felt was a good opening text and sent it, heart pounding and mouth dry.

**[Text: Ivan] Hey, it's Ludwig from the coffee shop.**

Message sent, he leaned back in the hard seat to listen to the lecture before sitting up straight again, fishing his vibrating phone out of his pants to answer the text.

**Hey! I was getting worried. Thought you lost my number.**

**No. I was in class and didn't know what to say.**

**Seems like you figured it out ))))**

Apparently. Before he could reply, another text came through.

**Are you free this weekend? You seem like the quiet sort and I've been wanting to ask you out for a while. There's a really good place near the coffee shop and it's not too pricy or noisy, even on the weekend. It's called Bocca Felice **

Ah. He had been there once when he and Feliciano had been together, and had good memories of the place, though visiting with a new boyfriend might be strange. Right? New memories over old and all that. Bocca Felice was a nice place anyway, so they were bound to have a good time.

**Yes, that sounds wonderful. Say seven thirty Friday night?**

His last ended an hour before then so he'd have plenty of time to change and get ready.

**Sounds great! I'm really looking forward to seeing you tomorrow.**

Tomorrow—Ah, his usual coffee run.

**Yes, I will see you then. Have a good day.**

On second thought, that sounded rather abrupt so he sent another text.

**I'll text you after my classes. It's very nice to finally get to know you better.**

If another text came through, he didn't get it since he had shoved his phone into his backpack, face still red from the awkward exchange. A date!


	3. Secret

Ludwig was one of those busy-bodies who always seemed to be doing something, despite what Ivan wanted him to be doing, like cuddling with him. He makes little balls of cake and puts them in a tin for Ivan to bring to work and eat throughout the day until there's none left, much to his disappointment. They had gone by so fast. When he gets home, Ludwig is reading in the living room, curtains drawn to prevent anyone from seeing in. His boss knows Germany is here, but still…. They don't want to risk anything. All it took was someone looking in at the wrong time and he could get hauled off to jail or worse. Ivan wasn't sure where the limits with his boss were drawn with him being immortal, but he certainly didn't want to test them. His boots are kicked off and his coat hung up before he saunters over to Ludwig and leans down to kiss his cheek, his boyfriend far more tolerant of affection when they were alone. It was in public that Ludwig fussed over silly things like "propriety" and "privacy" and other pointless things. The other countries knew about them, so why shouldn't they kiss each other in greeting? Aside from the usual European greetings on the cheeks. Ludwig set the book he had been reading on the coffee table to return the kiss, standing to stretch his arms over his head. "I've been cooking while you were gone," he told Ivan who had certainly smelled the food, whatever it was, meaty and savory. Dinner is a quiet affair with Ivan playing footsie under the table with an ever-reddening Ludwig before convincing him that the dishes would be fine soaking overnight. In the morning he leaves his boyfriend in bed and washes them, nothing but considerate of his constantly cleaning boyfriend. Ludwig wanders down for tea and they get distracted again much to Ludwig's consternation. Tables, he declares with a huff when they're done, are only for eating, save when simple and clean projects are worked on. Ivan just grins and kisses the back of his neck where the hair's cut short, where Ludwig will never admit that he likes being kissed. He feels it's his job to help Ludwig unwind and forget about work whether it's through sex or simpler activities such as movies. After Ludwig cleans the kitchen to his standards including the now defiled table, Ivan suggests a walk or game of chess, Ludwig accepting the walk as he missed his usual morning routine of running with his dogs and wanting some semblance of order in his morning. They can't hold hands, but thanks to the cold, they can walk closely together and talk about whatever came to mind, namely the latest gossip in Europe and what on earth France and England think they're doing. America's a source of annoyance for Ivan so Ludwig avoids the subject whenever he seems to be coming up, asking questions about this building and that. They stay out much later than planned, but they stop in a coffee shop to warm up their hands and stomp the snow off their boots before going to the store for more food, Ludwig adding ingredients for a cake to their cart. The bags are heavy by the time they're home and Ludwig gets to work on dinner as Ivan helps, the time passing in quiet peace. Ivan turns on the radio while he cleans dishes so there was something supplementing his chatter as Ludwig turned his attention from the oven to the counter to start the cake. Ludwig's used to Ivan talking about anything he can think of to fill the ever-encroaching silence that fills his home far too much these days. It's so lonely being by himself and no one liked to visit….. Once the cake is in the oven, Ivan steps behind Ludwig to cuddle him, wrapping his arms tightly around Ludwig's middle and kissing his neck again. Once upon a time, for a very brief time, they could go out in public together, and had they been together during the age of tsars, the most they would have gotten was strange looks for being so close for two young men, but no threat of arrest, no fear of death or fines like he would be held accountable for now. In Germany, they can go out on dates and have old grannies fuss over them about settling down with each other, he thinks wistfully as he holds his lover close. But he prefers his own place for his own reasons, namely that the land is him and his Russian is far better than German, obviously. They sit in the living room as the cake bakes, holding each other in order to better utilize the limited time they have together, since they can't go out on romantic getaways without drawing too much attention to themselves, nor can they really trust any of their fellow countries not to slip up and say stupid things to Russia's boss. The cake is cut up and pieces consumed before they take the rest of the evening to cuddle some more, watching the news and letting their hands wander lazily across each other's bodies, then retreat to bed when the news gets too depressing to listen to. In the silence of his bedroom, Ivan listens to Ludwig's breathing and hopes that one day, they won't have to hide like this anymore. 


End file.
